WEBVTT SOLEDA I AM SOLEDAD O’BRIEN. WELCOME TO "MATTER OF FAC." A RECORD NUMBER OF WOMEN ARE RUNNING FOR CONGRESS IN THIS YEAR’S MIDTERM ELECTIONS. 309 FOR THE HOUSE, 29 OF THE SENATE, AND IS AND WAS ARE EXPECTED TO GO UP. THE MAJORITY OF THEM ARE DEMOCRATS. ACCORDING TO THE CENTER FOR AMERICAN WOMEN IN POLITICS, SINCE 2016 GUYS THAN 146% INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF DEMOCRATIC WOMEN RUNNING FOR THE HOUSE, AND 5% INCREASE ON THE REPUBLICAN SIDE. BOTH PARTI HAVE GRASSROOTS ORGANIZATIONS TO SUPPORT WOMEN CANDIDATES. MAGGIE’S LIST IS TO RECRUIT FEMA CONSERVATIVES TO RUN FOR OFFICE WHILE EMERGE AMERICA IS ONE ORGANIZATION TEACHING FEMALE DEMOCRATS HUNDRED MANAGE SUCCESSFUL CAMPAIGNS. WE WILL SPEAK TO THE EXECUTIVE DIRECT OF MAGGIE’S LIST IN JUST A MOMENT, BUT FIRST WE SENT OUR CORRESPONDENT JESSICA GOMEZ TO ARIZONA, WHERE EMERGE AMERICA IS HOPING TO CLOSE THE POLITICAL GENDER GAP FOR THE DEMOCRATS. JESSICA: ON A SATURDAY MORNING IN CENTRAL PHOENIX, A SURGE OF WOMEN READY TO STEP UP. >> YOU NEED TO BE ASKING FOR PEOPLE’S VOTE. JESSICA: THEY’RE PART OF EMERGE ARIZONA’S CLASS NUMBER 6. FOR NEARLY 6 MONTHS, THIS DIVERSE GROUP OF WOMEN, DEMOCRATS FROM 24 TO 73 YEARS OLD, HAVE SPENT THEIR WEEKENDS LEARNING POLITICS 101. >> MOST PEOPLE ARE VOTING BY MAIL. JESSICA: EMERGE ARIZONA AND 23 OTHER CHAPTERS AROUND THE COUNTRY ARE BUSY DEATH YOU CAN ADD AS MANY ACTIVIST CODES AS YOU WANT. JESSICA: TEACHING WOMEN HOW TO BUILD A CAMPAIGN TEAM, FUNDRAISE, UNDERSTAND VOTER DATA. >> LINDSAY AND PATRICE, YOU DO CAN BRIDGE. JESSICA: AND GET OUT THE VOTE. THEY HAVE LITTLE, IF ANY, POLITICAL EXPERIENCE. BUT MOST HAVE ALREADY FILED TO RUN FOR OFFICE. >> I’M RUNNING FOR JUSTICE OF THE PEACE. >> TOWN COUNCIL. >> SCHOOL BOARD. >> I HAVE BEEN ENVISIONING FOR GROWTH AND OPPORTUNITIES SINCE I WAS FIVE YEARS OLD. JESSICA: 28-YEAR-OLD ALEXIS HERMOSILLO IS RUNNING FOR MAYO OF EL MIRAGE, A CITY NORTHWEST OF PHOENIX. HER FAMILY, WHO HAS BEEN IN EL MIRAGE FOR SOME 70 YEARS ARE LATINO, LIKE MOST HERE. BUT HERMOSILLO SAYS THERE ARE TOO FEW LATINOS AND WOMEN REPRESENTING THE >> FOR ME IT’S IMPORTANT FOR PEOPLE TO SEE PEOPLE WHO LOOK LIKE THEM, PEOPLE WHO SOUND LIKE THEM, PEOPLE WHO COME FROM THE SAME BACKGROUNDS THEY COME FROM. JESSICA: JERMOSILLO, TO HAS A MASTERS IN JOURNALISM, SAYS HER PLANS TO BECOME A NONPROFIT EXECUTIVE CHANGED AFTER THE 20 16TH ELECTION. >> AS A WOMAN, EATING LATINA, THINKING ABOUT THE FUTURE, WHAT THAT MEANT NOT ONLY FOR ME BUT FOR MY FAMILY, LEFT ME DEVASTATED FROM WANTING TO CREATE CHANGE. JESSICA: HAZEL CHANDLER, THE OLDEST MEMBER OF THE EMERGE CLASS, FELT THE SAME WAY. >> IT IS HEARTBREAKING, AND I COULD SIT HERE AND BE DEPRESSED OR I COULD GET OUT AND DO SOMETHING. JESSICA: A GRANDMOTHER OF SIX, CHANNEL IS JUST SPENT HER LIFE FIGHTING FOR WOMEN TO HAVE EQUAL FOOTING. WITH A PASSION FOR THE ENVIRONMENT, SHE SAYS RETIREMENT WILL HAVE TO WAIT. >> WE HAVE TO CHANGE IT FROM OR OUR CHILDREN DON’T HAVE A FUTURE. >> YOU HAVE GOT TO LOOK AT WHO IS RUNNING AND HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE RUNNING. JESSICA: NADIA RIVERO AND DAUGHTER SAKINA, BOTH MUSLIM, WORRY ABOUT THE FUTURE. THEY RUN A NONPROFIT FOR MUSLIM KIDS, MANY WHO ARE REFUGEES. >> THERE IS A WHOLE GENERATION OF KIDS WHO HAVE GROWN UP CONSTANTLY HEARING ABOUT HOW MUSLIMS ARE BAD, HOW THEY ARE TERRORISTS. I CANNOT IMAGINE WHAT IT IS LIKE FOR THEM. JESSICA: NEITHER HAS POLITICAL EXPERIENCE, ALTHOUGH DAUGHTER SAKINA DID DREAM OF RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT IN FIFTH GRADE. THEN 9/11 HAPPENED. PART OF WHAT DROVE ME TO GET TO WHERE I AM TODAY IN WANT TO RUN IS FIGURING OUT WE DON’T NEED TO HIDE OUT ANYMORE AND WE NEED TO STAND UP FOR OURSELVES AS A COMMUNITY. JESSICA: LIKE OTHERS HERE, THEY SAY THE CLASS HAS GIVEN THEM THE CONFIDENCE TO DO IT. >> WOMEN RUN FOR PTA AND FUN RACE FOR THE PJ, AND EMERGE ARIZONA TEACHES THESE WOMEN THAT IF YOU CAN FIND RACE FOR THE PJ, YOU CAN FUNDRAISER FOR YOURSELF. JESSICA: CLOSING THE GENDER GAP IN POLITICS HAS BEEN AN UPHILL BATTLE, BUT HERE IN ARIZONA, THE NUMBERS ARE BETTER THAN MOST. WOMEN MAKE UP 40% OF THE STATE LEGISLATURE, AND VOTERS HAVE ELECTED MORE FEMALE GOVERNORS THAN ANYWHERE ELSE. AND EMERGE WOMEN ARE AMONG THOSE WHO ARE WINNING HERE. ER PHYSICIAN AND EMERGE ALONG HIRAL TIPPIRINI STIFFED LOCAL AND STATE RACES AND WENT FOR U.S. CONGRESS FROM WINNING HER PRIMARY. >> I THINK IT BEHOOVES WOMEN TO REMEMBER, BE EMPOWERED, REMEMBER HOW IMPORTANT YOUR VOICE IS, BECAUSE WE NEED YOU CAN WE NEED THOSE VOICES. JESSICA: VOICES, THEY SAY, THAT ARE CHANGING THE FACE OF POLITICAL LEADERSHIP. >> THIS WHOLE WAY HAS WOKEN A SLEEPING GIANT, AND I DON’T THINK WE GO BACK FROM THIS. JESSICA: IN PHOENIX, ARIZONA, FOR "MATTER OF FACT," I AM A JESSICA GOMEZ. SOLEDAD: LAST YEAR VOTERS ELECTED 152 EMERGE AMERICA GRADUATES NATIONWIDE. WHEN WE COME BACK, THE NUMBER OF REPUBLICAN W

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Candidate Bootcamp Readying First Time Female Politicians

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Updated: 12:00 PM CDT Apr 14, 2018

Over 300 women are running for seats in the U.S. Congress and at least 40 are running for governorships. That’s more women than have ever run before for those positions. Many of the candidates are entering the political sphere for the first time, but Emerge America thinks their in-depth training program can help Democratic candidates close the political gender gap. Correspondent Jessica Gomez visits one Emerge America candidate boot camp in Arizona.